Has Anyone Hered of Fenugreek and How It Works

You can get Fenugreek from Coborns stores in the natural foods section. I have not been able to find it at GNC stores. Coborns has it for 11.99 for 180 capsules.

It worked well for me the first time i used it. I am exclusively pumping and have been for the last 4 months. My daughter is now 5 months old. I took it to keep up the extra supply that i had initially so i ended up freezing a lot of milk which is good because sometimes i need to dip into the stored milk to make sure i have enough to send to daycare. But as of now, no formula needed and I am almost halfway to my one year goal.

I have a hard time keeping a regular pumping schedule so that makes a difference. Also imprtant to drink plenty of water, 64 oz minimum a day, plus eat healthy.

i was told by the lactation consultant to use fenugreek. so we went and bought it and used it for a little until they changed me to perscription. i never got any milk in using either fenugreek or the perscription. so we had to resort to formula. it's really not all that bad though - since we're such an active family, the formula made it pretty easy to go anywhere and feed the little man.

good luck!

http://www.breastfeeding.com/all_about/fenugreek/all_abou...
copy and paste link above.
YES! Fenugreek is wonderfuly safe.
I used it and knowmany other Mahmas that have used it and has worked nicely!
If for wahtever reason you cannot breast fed you can always buy milk form a 'milk bank' too.http://www.hmbana.org/index.php?mode=locations

I took Fenugreek and it really helped me! I had to totally re-lactate after my son was born because he was too little to suck properly. I took the Fenugreek and not only did it help me get my milk supply back and up, it made me smell like maple syrup -- which might have helped him suck better! :-)

Good luck!

I use fenugreek & have found it to make a difference. I can tell on days that I might forget to take it that my milk production has gone down. You have to get it at GNC or something like that & it's not cheap, but it does work. As does Mothers Milk Tea by Traditional Medicinals.

Hi,
I have used Fenugreek numerous times throughout my year long (almost done) nursing experience. It really worked wonders for me. I have to pump excusively for many reasons, but tried pumping more frequently and for longer amounts of time. This worked a little bit for me, but then my doc suggested Fenugreek. It's made from the same thing as maple syrup. What I did is take it whenever my supply or my son's demand increased. I took up to six a day (two with every meal) until I was at my desired production. You can then stop taking it and continue nursing/pumping. Your production should remain the same. The only side effect that I had was a maple smell to me, my sweat, milk and urine. When I had to use it a lot (due to becoming ill) my baby also began to have a faint smell of it as well. Doctor said though that it's healthy for him to get Fenugreek - it's all natural.

J. - Fenugreek has been working great with me. I take 6 or 8 capsules a day. I saw an increase in my breast milk supply the very next day!

Also you could try Fennel and eating oatmeal.

HTH
A.

Hi J.,
I used Fenugreek while breastfeeding and I do believe it works. I breastfed my daughter for a year. I have heard that drinking a can of beer a day works also- something to do with the yeast in it I guess.
Good luck!

For some reason my body doesn't create enough milk for my babies and I used Fenugreek when I nursed my last one and it worked great. I have no idea how it works but it does. I, too, was pumping every 2 hours and my supply wasn't increasing at all (in fact it seemed like it was decreasing even more). Within the first day of taking the Fenugreek (3 capsules 3 times a day) my supply had significantly increased. My lactation consultant also recommended mother's milk tea to help production but I never tried it. I'm due with baby number 3 in October and I'm sure I'll be using it again. I may try the tea this time, too.

my husband and I just had our last baby as well (he was born 4/11/08) and is currently at childrens as he was 8 weeks early. I nursed my first two boys, the first one was so easy and I made it to my goal of 1 year, the 2nd baby was more difficult as I didnt produce as much milk and only made it 7 months. Becuase of my difficulties with the last baby I asked several people how I can get my milk production up expecially since I am only pumping and they suggested the Fenugreek suppliment and Mothers Milk Tea which also has some Fenugreek in it. I drank the Tea several times a day and took the Fenugreek (both bought at a suppliments store for very reasonable price) and with in days I was pumping more then double the 2 oz's i was getting before. After about a week of taking the suppliments I found my self pumping 12 oz each pumping session and have stopped taking the suppliments.

The nurses and doctors at Childrens told me that the suppliments dont work for everyone so if they dont then you can also get a perscription of something else from your doctor as well to help.

Good Luck.

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/index.html

This is a marvelous, clear, evidence-based website that I found hugely useful while breastfeeding. It will also help you figure out if you really aren't pumping enough, or if your supply is fine and it just seems like it couldn't possibly be enough (it's very easy to get yourself into some nasty head games when you're pumping regularly: how much was it this time? How much was it last time?)

I did use fenugreek at one point and it absolutely did help. It is a food flavoring, used often in Indian cooking, and also as the flavoring for artifically flavored maple syrup. I basically smelled like pancakes for a few weeks. It may flavor your milk, but will only make it a little sweeter. You do need to make sure you're taking enough, or it will have no effect. This explains how it works and how to manage doses.

http://www.kellymom.com/herbal/milksupply/fenugreek.html

Another thing to try is to continue pumping for a full 5-10 minutes *after* you've stopped getting any milk out. This sends a signal to your breasts that the baby is still hungry and wants more - so they'll make more! Also pump for 5 minutes every time you finish breastfeeding - again, "baby wants more!"

Try fenugreek and the extra pumping together. Good luck!

Hi J.,

I have 13 month old twins and my doctor recommended the fenugreek for me to keep up my milk supply. I only ended up breast feeding for the first few months, but I think it did help during that time. You can buy it at GNC. Just remember to cont to drink ALOT of water (as I'm sure you already know). Good luck,

B. Kari

A combination of fenugreek and blessed thissle worked very well for me with my second baby, with my first I used a prescription medication called Domperidone. My first baby was in the NICU and not able to nurse at all for the first few days, pumping was doing me no good, the lactation consultant told me to ask my Dr. to prescribe Domperidone, you have to ask, they will not just offer it to you! Domperidone works incredibly well, but it is usually a last resort, the herbs are usually enough.

Fenugreek didn't do much for me when I tried it. Oatmeal did help a bit. What did help the most was adding More Milk Plus by Mother Love. I went from only 24 ounces a day to around 40 ounces a day after a couple of weeks. I had done Fenugreek for two weeks and that didn't do much for me at all, other than make me smell like maple syrup. :) I used the tincture of More Milk Plus and added it to apple juice to mask the taste of the stuff (it's nasty but you get used to it).

I tried fenugreek to increase my milk supply and it didn't work. Sorry.

Well before taking any medicine you need to speak with your OB and Lactation specialist about all your options and that includes mentioning Fenugreek. Im including a link on the benefits of taking it and what to expect if you do. Good luck and best wishes

http://www.breastfeeding.com/all_about/all_about_fenugree...
The above link has pros and cons, benefits,dosages,sideffects, where to find it and ECT. I suggest reading ALL of it and sharing the link with your OB and Lactation specialist when you talk to them. And keep this in mind, just because it worked for one mom it could have different results for another mom with bad results. Dont go by what the others are suggesting here that its totally safe. Do you want to risk your health and your daughters? Think about it then act.

Hi J.-
I tried fenugreek with my first but it didn't really do anything for me. I might not have been using right tho. However, what did work and worked very well for me was drinking lots of liquids, especially 2% milk. The more milk I drank the more often I had to pump and the more milk I expressed. Hope this helps!

About me-Work FT single mom with 4-yr-old and baby due in 7 weeks

Hi J.,

The fenugreek worked for me along with the Mother's Milk tea and eating oats (oatmeal for breakfast, oatmeal cookies), and I was able to keep up with my twins demand for several months. I supplement with formula now along with the breast milk, but I still take the fenugreek, et al, to keep up my supply. Don't forget to sleep, eat and drink as much as your hectic schedule allows.

Good luck!

I also recommend the Mother's Milk tea! I've heard that eating oatmeal and flax seed helps too. Plus, it's just important to get a lot of liquids and calories in general. Good luck!

I have taken Fenugreek and it did work to increase my supply along with the pumping. I know that a low supply is very stress full. I found that the laleche league was very helpful. Good luck and I hope it works for you.
N.

I have used Fenugreek when I had my daughter because my production went down after going back to work at 6 weeks. I took 2 tablets 3 times a day and it did help with increasing my milk. Also I drank a ton of water because they (lactation)told me that would also help. Just a warning your milk will smell like molasses and if you sweat you will too! If you have any more questions email me at ____@____.com
S.

You can try fenugreek, but it is quite acrid. It comes in capsules. First try having a 1/2 glass of beer in the evening (or a whole beer if you like it). Beer increases breast milk faster than almost any supplement. No need to get drunk ~ one glass a day works well.

Fenugreek is a spice and has a very bad taste uncooked. My guess is that it will flavor your breast milk in a way that may turn off your baby girl.

YES! It really really helped my milk production. I must recommend increasing your water intake a whole lot too! I'm not quite sure the exact amount you need to take (ask a lactation consultant). I must admit that I was not very good at pumping with my second child. I used fenugreek for both kids. Worked like a charm, but my body refused to respond to the pump for my 2nd. Good luck!